Ohio State sophomore linebacker Malik Harrison had never started a game in his collegiate career going into Saturday’s game against Michigan State.
That changed in a big way on Saturday, when Harrison played every one of the Buckeyes’ defensive snaps in their 48-3 win over the Spartans.
With starting linebackers Jerome Baker and Dante Booker both sidelined for Saturday’s game due to injuries, Ohio State called upon Harrison to start at outside linebacker and never took him out of the game, even as substitutions were made at virtually every other position on defense and offense.
As a result, Harrison finished the day with a team-high 72 snaps in a game where 65 players saw the field.
Our full report on which Buckeyes played and how much each of them played on Saturday, along with our tracker of how many snaps every Buckeye has played this season, follows in this week’s edition of Snap Counts.
Author’s note: All snap counts listed in this article were tracked by Eleven Warriors through film review and should be considered unofficial, as Ohio State does not release its official snap counts. The players listed with each special teams unit are the players who were on the field with those units most frequently, but exact special teams snap counts are not included because it is not always possible to identify all 11 players on a special teams unit from TV camera angles.
Quarterbacks
J.T. Barrett: 61 snaps
Dwayne Haskins: 6
The lopsided nature of Saturday’s game, in which Ohio State scored all 48 of its points before the end of the third quarter, enabled the Buckeyes to put Haskins in the game for their final two possessions, giving him his first playing time in three games.
Running Backs
J.K. Dobbins: 44
Mike Weber: 17
Antonio Williams: 6
While Dobbins more than twice as many snaps as Weber on Saturday, the first time the playing time was skewed that heavily in favor of Dobbins since the first four games of the season, Weber took advantage of the snaps he got, running for a career-high 162 yards and two touchdowns on just nine carries. Williams checked into the game for Ohio State’s final two possessions, and touched the ball on five (four carries, one catch) of his six plays in the game.
Fullbacks
Zach Turnure: Special teams only
For the third game in a row, Turnure only saw playing time on special teams, but he made a big impact in that phase of the game on Saturday, recording two tackles in kickoff coverage.
Wide Receivers
Austin Mack: 35
Terry McLaurin: 35
K.J. Hill: 33
Johnnie Dixon: 32
Binjimen Victor: 29
Parris Campbell: 24
C.J. Saunders: 10
Brendon White: 3
Elijaah Goins: Special teams only
With Campbell back after missing the better part of Ohio State’s previous three games due to injuries, Ohio State went back to its usual rotations at wide receiver – Victor and Mack at X receiver, McLaurin and Dixon at Z receiver and Campbell and Hill at slot receiver – though Saunders continued to see some playing time at slot in the second half of the game, as Campbell came out of the game before the rest of his fellow wide receivers.
White, who is listed on the roster as a safety but has appeared in only one game at that position this year, made his debut on Ohio State’s offense when he checked in for the Buckeyes’ final three plays of Saturday’s game.
Parris Campbell made his return to the field for Ohio State against Michigan State.
Tight Ends
Marcus Baugh: 47
Rashod Berry: 17
Luke Farrell: 3
Berry continued to rotate in with the first-team offense as he has in recent weeks, but Baugh played more than 70 percent of the Buckeyes’ offensive snaps for a third week in a row, leaving only occasional repetitions for Berry, as Ohio State did not use any two-tight end sets in Saturday’s game. Farrell checked in for only the Buckeyes’ final series of the game.
Offensive Linemen
Michael Jordan: 61
Isaiah Prince: 61
Jamarco Jones: 60
Demetrius Knox: 60
Billy Price: 60
Joshua Alabi: 7
Matthew Burrell: 7
Brady Taylor: 7
Thayer Munford: 6
Malcolm Pridgeon: 6
Kevin Woidke: Special teams only
Jones, Jordan, Price, Knox and Prince each played every snap of the first three quarters of Saturday’s game. Alabi replaced Jones at left tackle, Taylor replaced Price at center and Burrell replaced Knox at right guard on the Buckeyes’ first possession of the fourth quarter, which lasted only one play before Barrett threw an interception. Pridgeon replaced Jordan at left guard and Munford replaced Prince at right tackle on the next series to finish out the game.
Defensive Ends
Nick Bosa: 50
Tyquan Lewis: 46
Jalyn Holmes: 40
Sam Hubbard: 38
Chase Young: 16
Jonathon Cooper: 12
Nick Seme: 1
Bosa, Lewis, Holmes and Hubbard continue to rotate with each other at the defensive end position as usual, though the snaps skewed slightly more in favor of starters Bosa and Lewis, which was also the case in the Buckeyes’ previous home game against Penn State. All four defensive ends continued to see the field simultaneously when the Buckeyes brought their nickel defense onto the field, with Hubbard also playing five snaps in a standup linebacker role when the Buckeyes brought a fifth defensive lineman onto the field.
Young rotated in for four snaps with the first-team defense in nickel packages, but saw most of his playing time opposite Cooper on the Buckeyes’ final defensive series. Seme also checked in for one snap as a nickel defensive tackle on the Buckeyes’ penultimate defensive play of the game.
Defensive Tackles
Dre’Mont Jones: 19
Robert Landers: 19
Tracy Sprinkle: 18
Jashon Cornell: 13
Davon Hamilton: 12
Haskell Garrett: 5
Michael Hill: 4
Because Ohio State heavily rotates its other defensive tackles in and out of the lineup, Jones tied for the team lead in defensive tackle snaps on Saturday even though he was ejected from the game in the second quarter following a targeting penalty.
With that being said, Jones’ ejection opened the door for Cornell, Hamilton and Garrett to each see a little more playing time at his 3-technique defensive tackle spot. Landers and Sprinkle rotated most of the snaps at nose tackle, with Hill – a 2016 starter who has played only occasionally since returning from a six-game suspension to start the year – being sprinkled in for a quartet of plays.
Linebackers
Malik Harrison: 72
Chris Worley: 62
Tuf Borland: 40
Keandre Jones: 5
Baron Browning: Special teams only
Justin Hilliard: Special teams only
Hayden Jester: Special teams only
Pete Werner: Special teams only
As previously mentioned, Harrison played every one of Ohio State’s defensive snaps in Saturday’s game. In addition to starting at strongside linebacker in the Buckeyes’ base defense, Harrison was one of two linebackers on the field in the nickel defense and the only linebacker on the field when the Buckeyes used their five-lineman nickel defense.
Worley moved outside to the weakside linebacker spot, from his usual position of middle linebacker, and was a mainstay on the field in both the base and nickel defenses, with the exceptions of when the Buckeyes used their five-man front and the final five plays of the game, on which he was replaced at weakside linebacker by Jones.
Borland played every snap in the Buckeyes’ base defense at Worley’s usual position of middle linebacker, but did not see any snaps in the nickel defense.
Cornerbacks
Denzel Ward: 51
Kendall Sheffield: 50
Damon Arnette: 36
Jeffrey Okudah: 21
Marcus Williamson: 3
Amir Riep: Special teams only
Ward played every snap of the first three quarters of the game before being replaced in the lineup by Okudah for the fourth quarter, with the outcome of the game already well in hand. Arnette played 36 of the Buckeyes’ first 37 snaps before suffering a thigh bruise that ended his day early.
Sheffield played only one snap in the Buckeyes’ base defense before Arnette suffered his injury, but played every snap of the game in the nickel defense and every snap in the base defense following Arnette’s departure from the game.
Williamson checked in to play slot cornerback in the nickel defense for the Buckeyes’ final three defensive plays of the game.
Safeties
Damon Webb: 67
Jordan Fuller: 67
Erick Smith: 20
Isaiah Pryor: 5
Webb and Fuller played all but the final five plays of Saturday’s game, with Fuller moving to the slot cornerback position and Smith replacing him at safety in the nickel defense after Arnette left the game with his injury. Smith and Pryor were both on the field at safety for the Buckeyes’ final five defensive plays of the game.
Field Goals/Extra Points
Sean Nuernberger (kicker)
Drue Chrisman (holder)
Liam McCullough (long snapper)
Rashod Berry (blocker)
Matthew Burrell (blocker)
Jonathon Cooper (blocker)
Michael Hill (blocker)
Thayer Munford (blocker)
Malcolm Pridgeon (blocker)
Brady Taylor (blocker)
Kevin Woidke (blocker)
Ohio State made no changes to its place kicking unit against Michigan State, using the same lineup it had previously used against Penn State and Iowa.
Kickoffs
Blake Haubeil (kicker)
Baron Browning (gunner)
Justin Hilliard (gunner)
Austin Mack (gunner)
Jeffrey Okudah (gunner)
Isaiah Pryor (gunner)
Amir Riep (gunner)
Erick Smith (gunner)
Zach Turnure (gunner)
Pete Werner or Hayden Jester (gunner)
Marcus Williamson (gunner)
With Dante Booker sidelined and Tuf Borland and Malik Harrison starting at linebacker, Pryor and Williamson were added to the kickoff return unit on Saturday, with the Buckeyes keeping the rest of their kickoff unit – including kickoff specialist Blake Haubeil – intact from the Iowa game. Werner was replaced on the unit for the second half of the game by Jester, a walk-on who saw playing time for just the second time this season.
Kickoff Returns
Mike Weber (returner)
Antonio Williams (blocker)
Jonathon Cooper (blocker)
Jordan Fuller (blocker)
Elijaah Goins (blocker)
Justin Hilliard (blocker)
Keandre Jones (blocker)
Jeffrey Okudah (blocker)
Erick Smith (blocker)
Zach Turnure (blocker)
Marcus Williamson (blocker)
With Campbell in his first game back from injury, Ohio State deployed Weber and Williams as its kickoff returners for the second week in a row, with Weber fielding Michigan State’s only kickoff of the game. Cooper, Goins and Williamson were all additions to the kickoff return blocking unit on Saturday, replacing Borland, Harrison and Johnnie Dixon.
Punts
Drue Chrisman (punter)
Liam McCullough (long snapper)
Tuf Borland (upback)
Jonathon Cooper (upback)
Sam Hubbard (upback)
Malik Harrison (guard)
Zach Turnure (guard)
Pete Werner or Erick Smith (tackle)
Elijaah Goins (gunner)
Terry McLaurin (gunner)
Jeffrey Okudah (gunner)
Ohio State’s only change to its punting unit on Saturday came at the tackle spot, where Jerome Baker usually plays, as Werner replaced Baker at that spot for Chrisman’s first punt of the game while Smith took that spot on the unit for Chrisman’s second and final punt of the game.
Punt Returns/Blocks
K.J. Hill (returner)
Damon Arnette or Jeffrey Okudah (rusher/blocker)
Parris Campbell (rusher/blocker)
Justin Hilliard (rusher/blocker)
Austin Mack (rusher/blocker)
Terry McLaurin (rusher/blocker)
Kendall Sheffield (rusher/blocker)
Erick Smith (rusher/blocker)
Denzel Ward (rusher/blocker)
Damon Webb (rusher/blocker)
Pete Werner or Jonathon Cooper (rusher/blocker)
Ohio State decided to trade some size for speed on its punt return/block unit on Saturday, replacing Rashod Berry, Dante Booker and Jonathon Cooper from the previous week’s unit with Campbell, Mack and Smith. Cooper did return to the lineup in the second half in place of Werner, while Okudah took Arnette’s spot in the lineup after his injury.
| POS | PLAYER | @ IU | OU | ARMY | UNLV | @ RU | MD | @ NEB | PSU | @ IOWA | MSU | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | J.T. BARRETT | 88 | 71 | 59 | 33 | 53 | 70 | 76 | 85 | 68 | 61 | 664 |
| QB | DWAYNE HASKINS | DNP | DNP | 10 | 50 | 14 | 22 | 8 | DNP | DNP | 6 | 110 |
| QB | JOE BURROW | DNP | DNP | DNP | 5 | 7 | DNP | 5 | DNP | DNP | DNP | 17 |
| RB | J.K. DOBBINS | 76 | 44 | 41 | 38 | 23 | 35 | 36 | 39 | 43 | 44 | 419 |
| RB | MIKE WEBER | DNP | 27 | 17 | DNP | 28 | 38 | 37 | 48 | 22 | 17 | 234 |
| RB | ANTONIO WILLIAMS | 12 | DNP | 10 | 38 | DNP | 8 | 16 | ST | 4 | 6 | 94 |
| RB | DEMARIO MCCALL | ST | DNP | DNP | 8 | 21 | 7 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 36 |
| RB | JORDAN LEASURE | DNP | DNP | 1 | 10 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 11 |
| RB | JARED DRAKE | DNP | DNP | ST | 4 | 1 | 3 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 8 |
| FB | ZACH TURNURE | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | 8 | 2 | ST | ST | ST | 10 |
| WR | K.J. HILL | 58 | 55 | 32 | 36 | 25 | 45 | 50 | 66 | 61 | 33 | 461 |
| WR | TERRY MCLAURIN | 49 | 41 | 52 | 25 | 41 | 54 | 54 | 51 | 29 | 35 | 431 |
| WR | AUSTIN MACK | 41 | 19 | 41 | 31 | 34 | 38 | 48 | 47 | 35 | 35 | 369 |
| WR | BINJIMEN VICTOR | 47 | 43 | 29 | 38 | 32 | 39 | 41 | 37 | 31 | 29 | 366 |
| WR | JOHNNIE DIXON | 39 | 39 | DNP | 41 | 33 | 36 | 34 | 34 | 41 | 32 | 329 |
| WR | PARRIS CAMPBELL | 47 | 38 | 32 | 11 | 28 | 30 | 6 | 3 | DNP | 24 | 219 |
| WR | C.J. SAUNDERS | 7 | DNP | 9 | 31 | 23 | 18 | 27 | 8 | 6 | 10 | 139 |
| WR | JAYLEN HARRIS | DNP | DNP | DNP | 19 | 7 | 17 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 43 |
| WR | TREVON GRIMES | DNP | DNP | 14 | 18 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 32 |
| WR/S | BRENDON WHITE | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST | 5 | ST | DNP | DNP | DNP | 3 | 8 |
| WR | ELIJAAH GOINS | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
| TE | MARCUS BAUGH | 49 | 49 | 41 | 25 | 43 | 53 | 49 | 74 | 56 | 47 | 486 |
| TE | RASHOD BERRY | 4 | ST | 15 | 24 | 22 | 17 | 33 | 18 | 12 | 17 | 162 |
| TE | LUKE FARRELL | 11 | DNP | 9 | 37 | 9 | 11 | 12 | DNP | DNP | 3 | 92 |
| TE | JAKE HAUSMANN | DNP | DNP | 2 | 4 | DNP | 3 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 9 |
| TE | DERRICK MALONE | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST |
| OL | MICHAEL JORDAN | 88 | 71 | 59 | 41 | 60 | 74 | 76 | 85 | 68 | 61 | 683 |
| OL | ISAIAH PRINCE | 88 | 71 | 59 | 41 | 60 | 74 | 76 | 85 | 68 | 61 | 683 |
| OL | JAMARCO JONES | 82 | 71 | 59 | 41 | 60 | 74 | 75 | 85 | 64 | 60 | 671 |
| OL | BILLY PRICE | 83 | 71 | 59 | 33 | 53 | 70 | 76 | 85 | 68 | 60 | 658 |
| OL | BRANDEN BOWEN | 88 | 71 | 59 | 88 | 60 | 23 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 389 |
| OL | DEMETRIUS KNOX | ST | ST | 10 | 30 | 13 | ST | 76 | 82 | 64 | 60 | 335 |
| OL | BRADY TAYLOR | 5 | DNP | 10 | 55 | 21 | 22 | 13 | ST | ST | 7 | 133 |
| OL | MATTHEW BURRELL | 6 | ST | DNP | DNP | 14 | 69 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 116 |
| OL | JOSHUA ALABI | DNP | DNP | 10 | 47 | 14 | 18 | 14 | DNP | 4 | 7 | 114 |
| OL | THAYER MUNFORD | DNP | DNP | 10 | 47 | 14 | 18 | 13 | ST | ST | 6 | 108 |
| OL | MALCOLM PRIDGEON | ST | ST | 10 | 17 | 1 | 18 | 13 | ST | ST | 6 | 65 |
| OL | KEVIN WOIDKE | DNP | ST | ST | ST | DNP | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
| K | SEAN NUERNBERGER | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
| K | BLAKE HAUBEIL | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | DNP | ST | ST | ST |
| K | BRYAN KRISTAN | DNP | DNP | ST | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST |
| POS | PLAYER | @ IU | OU | ARMY | UNLV | @ RU | MD | @ NEB | PSU | @ IOWA | MSU | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE | JALYN HOLMES | 59 | 48 | 28 | 25 | 36 | 29 | 29 | 40 | 47 | 40 | 381 |
| DE | TYQUAN LEWIS | 48 | 43 | 29 | 23 | 33 | 28 | 29 | 47 | 43 | 46 | 369 |
| DE | SAM HUBBARD | 51 | 43 | 30 | 25 | 29 | 28 | 29 | 38 | 49 | 38 | 360 |
| DE | NICK BOSA | 62 | 47 | 25 | 27 | 28 | 20 | 31 | 50 | 17 | 50 | 357 |
| DE | CHASE YOUNG | 13 | DNP | 9 | 35 | 34 | 22 | 26 | DNP | 7 | 16 | 162 |
| DE | JONATHON COOPER | 16 | 1 | 11 | 31 | 33 | 19 | 24 | ST | 6 | 12 | 153 |
| DE | NICK SEME | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST | DNP | 9 | DNP | DNP | DNP | 1 | 10 |
| DT | DRE'MONT JONES | 54 | 59 | 42 | 17 | DNP | DNP | 19 | 46 | 62 | 19 | 318 |
| DT | TRACY SPRINKLE | 34 | 34 | 28 | 17 | 19 | 12 | 9 | 30 | 34 | 18 | 235 |
| DT | ROBERT LANDERS | 25 | 27 | 28 | DNP | 21 | 16 | 24 | 16 | 31 | 19 | 207 |
| DT | JASHON CORNELL | 14 | 10 | 9 | 22 | 25 | 14 | 17 | 3 | 4 | 13 | 131 |
| DT | DAVON HAMILTON | 6 | ST | 12 | 26 | 19 | 17 | 13 | DNP | DNP | 12 | 105 |
| DT | HASKELL GARRETT | 6 | DNP | 4 | 14 | 10 | 11 | 8 | DNP | DNP | 5 | 58 |
| DT | MICHAEL HILL | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 7 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 22 |
| DT | MALIK BARROW | DNP | DNP | 9 | 7 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 16 |
| DT | DYLAN THOMPSON | DNP | DNP | DNP | 11 | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 11 |
| LB | JEROME BAKER | 89 | 77 | 60 | 42 | 42 | 35 | 42 | 69 | 74 | DNP | 530 |
| LB | CHRIS WORLEY | 87 | 77 | 25 | DNP | DNP | DNP | 21 | 48 | 42 | 62 | 362 |
| LB | DANTE BOOKER | 48 | 46 | 6 | 35 | 37 | 25 | 46 | 44 | 54 | DNP | 341 |
| LB | MALIK HARRISON | 19 | 17 | 4 | 21 | 20 | 22 | 13 | 14 | 20 | 72 | 222 |
| LB | TUF BORLAND | ST | ST | 41 | 22 | 26 | 17 | 26 | 7 | 26 | 40 | 205 |
| LB | BARON BROWNING | 6 | ST | DNP | 30 | 23 | 23 | 7 | ST | ST | ST | 89 |
| LB | KEANDRE JONES | 6 | ST | ST | 23 | 16 | 12 | 9 | ST | ST | 5 | 71 |
| LB | PETE WERNER | DNP | DNP | DNP | 12 | 14 | 9 | ST | ST | ST | ST | 35 |
| LB | JUSTIN HILLIARD | ST | ST | ST | 3 | 13 | 8 | ST | ST | ST | ST | 24 |
| LB | HAYDEN JESTER | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST | ST |
| CB | DENZEL WARD | 77 | 59 | 44 | 38 | 35 | 5 | 42 | 63 | 59 | 51 | 473 |
| CB | DAMON ARNETTE | 63 | 66 | 54 | 30 | 34 | 35 | 13 | 59 | 55 | 36 | 443 |
| CB | KENDALL SHEFFIELD | 62 | 39 | 30 | 41 | 48 | 37 | 51 | 42 | 34 | 50 | 434 |
| CB | JEFFREY OKUDAH | 7 | ST | 4 | 28 | 23 | 27 | 17 | ST | ST | 21 | 127 |
| CB | MARCUS WILLIAMSON | DNP | DNP | DNP | 17 | 13 | 17 | 13 | ST | DNP | 3 | 63 |
| CB | AMIR RIEP | ST | ST | ST | ST | 7 | 7 | 11 | ST | ST | ST | 25 |
| CB | TREVON FORTE | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST | DNP | ST | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | ST |
| S | DAMON WEBB | 89 | 77 | 62 | 42 | 42 | 39 | 53 | 69 | 73 | 67 | 613 |
| S | JORDAN FULLER | 54 | 51 | 62 | 25 | 54 | 39 | 53 | 69 | 71 | 67 | 545 |
| S | ERICK SMITH | 42 | 26 | 66 | 43 | DNP | DNP | 29 | ST | ST | 20 | 226 |
| S | ISAIAH PRYOR | 6 | ST | 4 | 27 | 29 | 17 | 13 | DNP | ST | 5 | 101 |
| S | JAHSEN WINT | ST | ST | ST | ST | 2 | 17 | ST | ST | DNP | DNP | 19 |
| S | WAYNE DAVIS | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 10 | ST | DNP | DNP | DNP | DNP | 10 |
| P | DRUE CHRISMAN | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
| LS | LIAM MCCULLOUGH | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST | ST |
